Slipcovers are widely used by consumers as an inexpensive alternative to re-upholstering a piece of seating-type furniture. Originally, slipcovers were custom tailored by a professional having the proper tools and training to precisely fit a particular piece of furniture. Custom tailored slipcovers, however, are typically as expensive as the cost of re-upholstering the piece of furniture.
Prefabricated slipcovers that can fit a variety of furniture items of typical dimensions and which can be more readily applied by the consumer have been designed. Though these slipcovers tend to be less expensive to produce than custom-tailored ones, they can be difficult to design to accommodate various styles and shapes of furniture, and often result in an unsatisfactory appearance due to improper fit.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,210,739, issued May 1, 2007, discloses a multi-piece slipcover for accommodating a piece of furniture having removable seat cushions. The removable seat cushions are covered by a single bag-like cover into which the seat cushions are inserted, leaving excess material extending beyond the cushions. The excess material is folded under the cushions at each end to hold the material on the upper surface of the cushions taut when the cushions are in place on the on the furniture seat.
For added comfort, it is popular presently to manufacture chairs, sofas and like furniture having one or more loose back cushions and seat cushions produced in a variety of shapes and sizes. Attempting to cover the back cushions with the two-piece slipcover of U.S. Pat. No. 7,210,739 is however somewhat problematic. Typically, the base cover would first be applied to the furniture, the seat cushion covers would then be applied to the seat cushions, the covered seat cushions would then be placed onto the furniture seat, and the base cover would then be partially removed to place the back cushions on the back and on the seat cushions. Finally, the partially-removed base cover would be reapplied to cover the back cushions.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,659,550 discloses an upholstery system that includes a partial slipcover for covering one or more loose back cushions. Each partial slipcover is made of a non-stretch fabric with an opening at one end that can be closes by means of an elastic cord closure. However, because the non-stretch slipcovers are intended to cover a variety of shapes of back cushions, the covers are not form-fitted to the back cushions, and therefore may be insecure and may exhibit undesirable creases and excess material in some applications.
It would be advantageous to provide a form-fit slipcover capable of accommodating loose back cushions securely, and capable of being applied with a less difficult assembly procedure than that presented by current two-piece systems.